Pack your bags, hubby’s got a new job

If you or your significant other were offered a job right now, and that job was in another city far away from friends and family that pitch in with child care, would you take the job?

Job seekers are starting to feel they have no choice. A new survey shows unemployed workers are giving relocation additional consideration as more people chase fewer jobs.Indeed, nearly 20 pecent of workers who found employment in the second quarter relocated for the position, according to Challenger Gray & Christmas, an outplacement consultancy.

If you are hesitating about relocating your entire family and considering a long distance commute, think again. Your new employer isn’t likely to go for that idea.

Recently, I had a talk with Tim Tolan, a partner with the executive search firm Sanford Rose. He told me employers really don’t want their executives to do cross-state commuting anymore because of work/life balance issues. If they make a hire, they want the person to relocate for the jobrather than shuttle home on the weekends.. “They may be ok with the hire doing it for a short while but they don’t want them to make it a long-term situation,” Tolan says. “It too hard on the person to have no down time. More often than not, it doesn’t work out at home, the employee quits and everyone loses. “

For now, career advisors feel strongly that people need to go where the jobs are, even if it means leaving a support network behind.“You really have to be in a career management mode. If you’re unemployed and the opportunity is in Oshkosh, if it’s a good opportunity, go to Oshkosh, Dale Winston, CEO of executive serch firm Battalia Winston INTernational told Amy Hoak of MarketWatch.

Here is a checklist to look over before deciding to relocate.

·Make sure you fully understand the local economy you are going to before you pack your bags

·Have a back up plan. What you would do if the job doesn’t work out?

Scrutinize whether you can afford to relocate. most employers aren't offering relocation packages anymore. A cross-country move can cost as much as $8,000.

Understand how child care costs compare? What will be the financialimpact of losing your babysitting and child care support network?.

What will you do with your current home? Employers aren’t as willing to take over home sales. Are you willing to sell you home, even at a loss, for a career move? Would you consider renting a home in your new city and renting out your former home until the market turns around?